


patched into them with straw and rag

by elumish



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Sarek Adopts Everyone, Tarsus IV
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-27
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-20 12:16:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18992479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elumish/pseuds/elumish
Summary: Sarek receives the call 2.07 minutes after finishing morning meditation.





	patched into them with straw and rag

**Author's Note:**

> In case you can't tell, this is basically another AU of Linguistic Ambiguities in Vulcan Ethical Codes, but it also doesn't require you to have actually read Linguistic Ambiguities of Vulcan Ethical Codes, I just like writing new versions of it.

Sarek receives the call 2.07 minutes after finishing morning meditation; he closes the door to his office before answering it so as not to wake Amanda. His adun’a is particularly irritable when she is woken early.

The instigator of the call is T’Lok, a researcher on the Vulcan research vessel T’Nar. Sarek has had no interaction with the vessel, though he has seen a number of their papers that have been published in the Vulcan Science Academy.

“Have you been briefed on the incidents of Tarsus IV?” T’Lok asks when Sarek answers the call.

Sarek inclines his head. “I have.”

“The T’Nar, though being the ship that first arrived, transferred all but one former inhabitants of Tarsus IV to the Starfleet vessel once it arrived. It was decided logical to have the remaining inhabitant stay on the T’Nar, as due to his reaction to the idea of transferring ships, such an action was deemed detrimental to his mental health. As the inhabitant has been stated that his legal Earthside guardian is abusive, it has been decided that returning him there would be illogical. However, as the inhabitant is a prominent Terran figure, it was deemed appropriate to contact you with this matter.”

“What is the name of the individual?”

“James Tiberius Kirk.”

Sarek runs through the limited information he is aware of regarding James Tiberius Kirk, son of George and Winona Kirk. “Is his mother the alleged abuser?”

“No. Winona Kirk remarried and left James and his brother with her new husband. His brother ran away, and following that James was sent to Tarsus IV.”

“Where is the mother now?”

“She is deployed on the  _ Gagarin _ . They are not scheduled for leave on Earth for 3.87 years.” T’Lok is silent for a second. “Considering that she considered it sufficient to leave James with an abuser despite the evidence of her elder son having run away, her decision-making capabilities must be considered flawed.”

From the limited information he currently has access to, Sarek would concur with that assessment, though he acknowledges that that decision may change should further information be presented. “Does the T’Nar have the capabilities necessary to care for the boy until a decision has been made?” he inquires.

“It does. Additionally, a sufficient number of researchers aboard the T’Nar have agreed to educate or otherwise raise James, should he remain onboard for any length of time commensurate with his lifespan.”

“I will take that into consideration. Forward a document containing all relevant information to my PADD. I will respond with a course of action within 24 hours.”

T’Lok inclines his head in acknowledgment, then ends the video call.

Sarek exits his office and begins preparing breakfast. 7.43 minutes later, Spock exits his room and concludes in aiding with the preparation of breakfast. While Amanda does prepare meals when awake, her sleep schedule is more variable than Sarek’s and Spock’s, and so Sarek and Spock prepare breakfast those times when Amanda is still asleep.

Spock and Sarek have commenced their meals when Amanda emerges from their bedroom. She is not wearing her headscarf, as she has not yet gone outdoors for the day, but her hair is twisted up and pinned to her head.

“Good morning,” she says as she walks to the table. She stops beside Spock to press a her lips to his forehead, despite both Sarek and Spock informing her numerous times that such an action is not appropriate given Spock’s age.

“It is morning, ko-mekh,” Spock acknowledges.

Amanda presses two fingers to Sarek’s, and he can feel her amusement and her love through the connection before she continues on to her own seat at the table. He sends his own love in return, as he is aware she finds comfort from the confirmation despite it having been expressed the previous night. 

“Do either of you need anything from the market?” Amanda asks after taking a sip of tea. It had not cooled sufficiently; Sarek feels her discomfort as she burns her tongue. “I’m leaving for the translator’s conference tomorrow.”

“Sa-mekh and I are capable of buying what we require from the market during your time at the conference,” Spock reminds Amanda.

“Wouldn’t it be logical to minimize the number of trips, though?” Amanda shakes her head. “If you don’t need anything, I suppose I can just leave you to fend for yourselves.”

After the conclusion of the meal, when Amanda is washing the dishes, Sarek hears her ask Spock, “Have you heard from Michael?”

Sarek closes his office door, cutting off the sound from the kitchen.

On Sarek’s PADD is the requested documentation from the T’Nar. Included on it is the medical and psychological assessments of James Tiberius Kirk, younger son of Winona and George Kirk. His name does not appear on the Starfleet survivor list, though that is likely due to the lack of intake on a Starfleet ship, if James Kirk has not been off of the T’Nar since the rescue.

Particularly given James Kirk’s status and that those on the T’Nar are seeking custody, it would be prudent not to correct the Starfleet list at the moment. It is not a lie, not even of omission; the Starfleet list is of all those survivors who went through the intake process on the Starfleet ship. Adding James Kirk’s name, particularly at this point, would only draw attention to him.

The laws are ambiguous as to what right members of the T’Nar have to take custody over James Kirk. Given Vulcan laws regarding the protection of children, children are not to be returned to guardians against which there is evidence of abuse until such time as an investigation has been concluded; such evidence can be a statement by the child. As such, the researchers on the T’Nar have a legal responsibility not to return James Kirk to his current primary guardian. However, James Kirk has a legal biological guardian against whom there are no such accusations of abuse, though she does not reside somewhere where she may take custody at the moment. Additionally, as there is not a permanent staff of the T’Nar, any individual member who took custody of him there may end up at a different posting before James Kirk reaches adulthood.

After consultation with a Vulcan legal expert and an administrator of the Vulcan Diplomatic Corps, Sarek contacts T’Lok.

“I have a solution to allow James Kirk to continue to reside on the T’Nar. However, I would need to speak to James Kirk in person prior to its initiation. Additionally, a reasonable effort would be required to be expended to contact Winona Kirk and offer her custody of James Kirk.”

“The ship Commander Kirk is currently serving on is out of range of contact, on a deep space exploratory mission. It is not set to return with communications range for 87 days.”

That does simplify matters. “A message will be placed in the Commander’s file, for when she returns to a Federation spaceport.”

“The T’Nar will be on Vulcan in two days.”

Sarek ends the call and begins the necessary forms.

\--

It is deemed unwise to remove James Kirk from the T’Nar to Vulcan soil, as he is physiologically too weak from his malnutrition to withstand the heat and lowered oxygen content. While the T’Nar operates at a higher temperature and lower oxygen content than standard Federation ships, it is cooler and more oxygenated than the planet’s surface. Instead, Sarek boards the ship, where he is greeted by T’Kal.

“James has been informed that you are here to see him,” T’Kal says. “In response, he has grown agitated. There is a seventeen percent chance he will become violent, based on previous observation.”

“That is understood,” Sarek says. He heads to the room where James is currently; Vulcan research vessels currently in use are all of identical design and construction, and so he requires no guide to locate the room.

The first thing he becomes aware of after entering the room is James Kirk standing in the far corner of the room, back to two walls, arms crossed across his chest in a human gesture of defiance.

“I'm not leaving,” James says before Sarek has a chance to introduce himself. “You can't make me.”

“I can make you vacate this vessel,” Sarek corrects, “but that is not my intention.”

James blinks at him, his posture shifting. From Sarek's experience with Amanda, that specific shift indicates confusion. “I thought that's why you were coming, to make me go back to Earth.”

“Should the intention have been to force your return to Earth, there would have been no need to bring you to Vulcan. Rather, you would have been taken to a Starfleet dock so you could be returned that way. As that has not occurred, you can infer that we have no such intention.”

“What do you want, then?” His eyes narrow. “You a doctor, then?”

Sarek had been under the impression James had been informed of his identity, but perhaps he was mistaken. “I am the Vulcan ambassador to Earth. My name is Sarek.”

“Yeah, they said you're the ambassador, but how do I know you're not a doctor?”

“Vulcans do not lie.”

James laughs. “Everyone lies.”

“As Vulcans do not lie,” Sarek corrects, “that statement is untrue. However, it is true that humans tell frequent untruths, both intentional and unintentional.”

James stares at Sarek for .43 minutes then pulls a nutrition bar from his pocket, unwraps the top of it, and bites off a large chunk. “The doctor says I gotta eat regularly,” he says around a mouthful of food, “even if I'm not hungry. Because my body forgot how to regulate itself right.”

The words are spoken defiantly, though Sarek is unsure as to why. “That is correct.”

James offers the partially-eaten bar across the room to Sarek. “You hungry?”

“I am not.”

“You sure?”

“I am indeed certain that I do not require sustenance, as I have eaten recently and my body has no problems identifying hunger.”

James eyes him suspiciously, then mutters, “'Kay” and pulls the bar back to take another bite from it. “Why are you here, then, if you're not a doctor and you're not here to take me back to Earth?”

“An interest has been expressed by members of this research vessel to take custody of you so that you may remain in the vessel for as long as you wish to. Due to the inherent transitory nature of vessel-based researchers, that request posed some challenges. However, as ambassador to Earth and due to the fact that you currently reside in Vulcan territory, I am able to obtain custody of you and provide permission for you to remain on board the vessel.”

“Why?”

“There is a basis for Vulcan children remaining aboard research vessels as a means of gaining practical experience, so long as proper educational attainment can otherwise be maintained.”

“No,” James says, “why  _ you _ ? Why does the ambassador give a shit about me?”

Sarek considers mentioning James's notoriety, but he thinks Amanda would recommend against that, so instead he says, “It is not the Vulcan way to allow children to remain with abusers, and as ambassador I have specific grounds to take custody as a means of preventing you from being returned to an abusive parent.”

“I could be lying about Frank,” James says. “Everyone says I'm a liar. And Frank's an adult.”

“One's age has no bearing on their ability to tell the truth. Moreover, children's testimony is taken as evidence in accusations of abuse and is considered sufficient to remove a child until an investigation has been concluded. As we have no grounds on which to investigate a human on Earth, there is no point at which, by Vulcan law, it would be proper lto return you to your step-father's custody.”

“Huh.” James chews the last of his nutrition bar. “So what do you need from me?”

“I require your acceptance of my custody, as well as verbal confirmation that you wish to remain on the T'Nar. Should you not wish to remain in the T'Nar, I will return with you to my home, though that may require significant medical assistance given your current state of malnutrition. Should you remain on the T'Nar, I will require monthly updates as to your wellbeing, as well as a yearly in-person confirmation, of which the details can be determined based on the position of the T'Nar at the time.”

“So that's it? I say yes and you just… let me stay on the ship? For as long as I want?”

“So long as you are able to maintain the required level of education attainment, yes.”

“Then yeah,” James says. “Sure. What the fuck.”

“To which point is that providing verbal confirmation?”

“All of it. Not going back to Frank, staying here, sending you a message once a month. I can do that if it means I never go back to that dickhead.”

“Are there any points to which you wish for clarification, intend to object, or would like to amend or add on to?”

James stares at him, crinkling the wrapper in his hand. “Nah,” he says finally, “I got it.”

\--

The T'Nar departs Vulcan 3.6 days later, and Sarek's adun'a returns from her conference 1.7 days after that, late in the night when the desert is cold and she lets her headscarf slip down before she has entered their home.

His adun'a looks tired, and Sarek has the supposition that she has experienced inadequate sleep patterns, as she has previously stated occurs when they do not sleep in the same bed as each other.

Sarek greets her at the door to their home, allowing her to step inside and closing the door before he cups her head in his hand and presses his forehead to hers.

"Hello, adun'a," he says.

Amanda smiles.

 

**Author's Note:**

> As is often the case, I'm considering writing more, but who knows if/when I'll get around to it, so *jazz hands* here it is.


End file.
